Submarine boat.



8 SHEETS-SHEET l.

' Paten fied Mar.

F! FENAUX.

SUBMARINE Bow. APPLIG ATION FILED HAYES, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHBET 2.

oblcxobioroloeolomololoxoxol Int/enter,

Patented Mar. 10, 1914;-

' Patented Mar. 10, 1914,

8 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

mwwwmm m WWW. WNW. H .H H H Hunuhnn I T nn J 2 I FERNAND FENAUX, OF LE HAVRE. FRANCE, .ASSIGNOR TO CHANTIERS ET ATELIERSF AUGUSTIN NOBIVIAND, OF LE HAVRE, FRANCE, A. CORPORATION OF FRANCE.

SUBMARINE BOAT.

To all whom it may] concern:

Be it known that I, Fnnnnun FENAUX, citizenof the French Republic, residing at Le Havre, Department of the. Seine-Infrieure, in France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Submarine Boats; and I do hereby declare the fol lowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to submarine boats and similar vessels and more particularly vto a special construction, applicable to all types of such boats, for mooring mines while the boat is submerged. I, r

In a construction of this kind it is important to satisfy the following conditions:'lhe marine mines must be firmly secured in a convenient manner both while the submarine boat is navigating at the surface and also. when submerged; the mines must be carefully protected irom the heating of the waves; all the operations of moon ing must be capable of being carried out from .the interior of the submarine while submerged; the stability of the boat must not be appreciably affectedby the presence ofthe mines on board; the mooring of the mines must be capable of being carried out without causing any; impacts between the mine and the various parts or accessories of the boat. I,

According tothe minesare placed in cells provided at the sides of the submarine in which they are held during navigation protected from the heating of the waves and in which they are positively guided during the operation of mooring which takes place when each mine is dropped oris forced from its cell as may be required, whether the mine leaves the submarine in an upward or downward direction, according as it has a positive or negative buoyancy when immersed.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1. represents a transverse section of a submarine boat provided with mines carried by the boat according to the invention. Figs. :2 and 3 are diagrammatic views showing the manner of forming the mine retaining cells; Fig. 4 is a more or less diagrammatic transverse sectional view showing a modified form of cell construction; Fig. 5 is a transverse section of one of the mine retaining Specification of Letters Patent.

present invention the.

Patented Mar. 1Q, 1914:.

Application filed May 26.1913. Serial No. 769,861.

cells showing the mine mounted. therein;v

and Fig. 6 isu vertical section taken on the j line A-BC-D of Fig.

'lhe shell or hull of the submarine is indicated at a; '7 indicates a mine placed at the side of the submarine and which is held and guided by devices which will be more fully described hereinafter. sheet metal is shown ate completely enveloping the mines in order to protect them from the waves and from external shocks.

Ii? the mine is to be dropped through the lower part, as shown in the drawings, the sheet metal portion 0 is provided at the lower part with openings which may normally be closed by a gate or a screen, if de-v A casing of" sired,'which is remoi'ed at the'time of mooring the mine. The sheet metal portion 0 comprises at the upper part an opening d which may or may notbe provided with a closure and which serves for the i ntroduc tion of the mine into itspcsition or for the exhaust of the engine. This opening also gives access to the upper part of the mine containing delicate parts the inspection of which must be provided for. If the mooring of the'mine takes place upwardly the sheet-metal portion 0 may either be permanently opened, or be closed by means of a gate or a screen which is removed for mooring the mine. In all cases the sheet metal portion 0 must have the form required for providing a satisfactory outline of the boat. With this object the portion 0 may be ar ranged in the case of submarines having a partially or completely double shell in such a manner as to be connected with the outer shell at a point beyond the mine cells, as is shown in Fig. 3. In submarines having a single shell, or in those having a double shell in which it is desired to place the mines outside the double shell the sheet portion 0 will be designed with a view topfi'ering the least possible resistance to the motion, also with a vlew to throwing up as little spray. as

possible and to facilitating the placing of between the submarine and the portion a can be closed and utilized either as a water ballast, or for storing the combustible. They could also be filled with plugging materials,

cork or kapock, with a view to increasing the stability of the boat.

The mine 1, in Figs. 5 and 6, which may be of any suitable type has two guideways 2 at each end of which is a roller 3; the mine also carries another roller l. The shell carries, for each mine, two guideways 5 at the lower end of each of which is a roller 6. A guide 7 is carried by the fixed wall on the other side of the mine. A retaining device. which in Figs. 5 and 6 comprises a toothed wheel 8 engaging with a rack 9 fixed upon the mine, can be actuated from the interior of the boat by means of a shaft 10 and a lever 11 which cooperates with and can be .locked to a sector .12.

To enable the mines to be placed in position in the space provided for them each mine is broughtabove-its compartment and directed in such a manner that the two lower rollers 3, and also the roller 4,, can engage in the guides 5 and 7 fixed to the submarine. he mine can thus be lowered into its compartment and the two upper rollers 3 also come into engagement with the guides '5. As the mine continues to descend the first tooth of the rack 9 engages with the first tooth of the gear 8 which must be carefully brought into the proper position by bringing the lever 11 into the position 11; the mine engages the gear and the lever 11 is thusbrought into the position 11 in which it is held by the sector 12 by means of a notch and a spring catch which is not shown in the drawing. The mine is thus held stationary.

In order to moor the mine it is necessary to actuate the lever 11 and to lower it into the position 11. While this is being done the rack is released from the toothed sector and the mine drops guided by the 'four rollers 3 and the roller 4 rolling in the corresponding guides. When the mine comes into contact with the water it receives a side push which brings the guides 2 intocontact with the rollers 6. The mine continues to descend in a general direction parallel with the guideways but it tends to tilt under the effect of the lateral push which it receives. At the moment when the upper rollers 3 have descended to the level of the point 13 where the front check of the guides 5 ends the mine tilts. The position of the point 13 is determined in such a manner t1. during the tilting movement no part fixed to the mine contacts with any parts connected to the submarine, as is shown by the dotted line at the lower part of Fig. 6. lVhile thus tilting the mine continues to descend remaining applied against the rollers 6 until the guides 2 have left these rollers; afterward the mine is completely free.

The accessory devices for operating safety or other devices of the mine itselfhave not been shown in the drawing, as these are variable with the type of mine.

The installation described, which relates to a mine moored downwardly, that is to say having a negative buoyancy would be entirely analogous for dropping a mine which is moored upwardly, that is to say, having a positive buoyancy. The rollers and guides would in this case have the same cooperation.

The arrangement can be modified, without departing from the invention, for maintaining the mine in the vertical direction, which arrangement, according to the above description, comprises a gear and a rack which is also employed for giving an impulse to the mine. If the nature of the latter is such that it can be immersed by its own weight the mechanism can be simplified and be replaced by a simple supporting frame which can be removed by rotating 1t on the axis of a hinge.-

I claim- 1'. A submarine boat provided with a series of mine retaining cells, said cells provided with upper and lower openings to permit the mine to be moored in an upward or downward direction.

2. A submarine boat provided with a series of mine retaining cells, said cells provided with upper and lower openings to permit the mine to be moored in an upward or downward direction, and guiding means to guide the mines vertically in said cells.

v3. A submarine boat provided with a series of mine retaining cells, said cells provided with upper and lower openings to per. mit the mine to be moored in an upward or downward direction, guiding means to guide the mines vertically in said cells, and releasable means to retain the mines in the cells. In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

FERNAND FENAUX.

Witnesses:

F. LEFRANE, A. BERNARD. 

